Frozen Heart
by ryokablade
Summary: Aizen stops the Winter War and returns Orihime in exchange for her powers, but with a purpose. Will Ichigo confuse love with pity? Has he left his relationship with Rukia? And is there something Orihime is hiding from the shinigami? Ichihime vs Ichiruki
1. Prologue: Black Hole

Prologue: Black Hole

**Author's Note: Well, our first serious fic. Might be depressing and dark. This does not match the current storyline of Bleach. Ichigo does kill Ulquiorra, but does not fight Aizen. This is Ulquiorra's POV.**

When a human is born, a black hole is born with it. This black hole, is unseen by the human eyes, and lies dormant deep within their bodies. This black hole does nothing, until the right time comes.

For every human, this hole erupts at a different stage. For some, its shows the moment the human learns to call for its mother. For others, it lies sealed within their souls, until humans get their first taste of reality. Unsheltered by comfort, thrown into a hell humans called life.

Life. It gives humans purpose…as long as they search for it.

Some don't even find it.

Life. Opens that hidden black hole.

Human minds are weak and fragile, easily changed by a simple thought.

All humans are different, but they share the same trait of possessing a black hole.

That hidden black hole will open up, and humans show their hideous selves.

From that moment, humans want.

They take.

They steal.

They envy.

They murder.

They want.

No power, wealth, fame…

No matter how much of it they get, they never smile.

That black hole just takes and takes, even if the whole world bows before them, they'll still want more.

That is the human nature.

So weak.

A little push can rip open the black hole.

One lie can cause chaos.

One bend of the truth can turn them on each other.

One mistake will be forever burned in the minds of another.

The black hole opens the human eyes.

Jealousy.

Hatred.

Pain.

Sorrow.

Humans, with that black heart opened, will do anything to rid of these feelings.

Hatred. They will kill.

Pain. They will fool themselves and get to hate others.

Sorrow. They will understand this dog eat dog world. And learn no mercy.

Jealousy. They will feel pain and sorrow. They will hate. They will take.

Lust. The worst and most useless of them all. Blinds their eyes. They will feel hope even if it is not there.

Then they will understand that they cannot get what they want.

So they will feel sorrow

Then pain

Then jealousy

Then hatred

Human nature is truly disgusting.

The strong will prey on the weak, and love it, yet they deny it.

Friends, family… nothing but delusions to make themselves painless.

All humans have a black hole.

That will grow larger and larger.

They will want more and more.

They will take and destroy.

They will hate and envy.

This black hole cannot disappear itself.

This black hole that lurks in your soul and body.

To reach salvation, you must rid of this black hole.

In every black hole, an evil lurks.

An evil that will drive humans to do the wildest things.

For themselves.

This black hole…

Did this to me.

I'll never understand…

The pathetic human nature.

I try to tear this black hole away from them

Cut them to pieces

Dig out their organs

But then they die with a look of fear in their eyes.

Fear, yet another foolish emotion caused by that black hole.

This fear makes them crawl on the ground, begging for mercy.

So I resent it.

I will destroy this black hole.

And I never find this black hole.

This black hole caused me no feelings,

Since I had no such black hole.

When I stepped near one, I tried to find it and toss it away.

All it did was smile

Mocking me

Hoping

Laughing at me

I tried to destroy it

Yet I couldn't

I was given no such orders

My loyalty does not come from this black hole

I had no such thing.

I probably once had a black hole.

But then I became powerful, and understood that it was only dragging me down.

So I tore this black hole out of my soul.

My body now contains an empty hole

Where that black hole used to be.

But, I do not have one

That is that

Loyalty is of my mind.

My loyalty was carved into my body and soul

So I couldn't find this black hole.

So I denied its existence within me.

But this black hole is the human nature.

One came to me…

To save another one of its kind

To take it back.

My master then agreed.

To release that captive black hole.

To stall this war.

With least bloodshed for now.

Yet I continued to deny this black hole.

The one that came to me said I also had one.

No.

I'm not weak. I'm no human.

So I saw this black hole.

As inferior.

But something, something about the black hole of this boy

Made him stronger.

So I understood.

It had to go.

Then I tried to destroy it possessor.

So it killed me.

It was then I saw this black hole.

This black hole called a heart.

* * *

_The human nature is a hungry beast that wants and takes. When it finds something it cannot have, it will fight and struggle for it. When it does posses it, its temporary happiness will black out its eyes, and he will be blind from the truth._

_The truth that something had been hidden it in the heart of the one I captured._

_So it lies in her heart._

_Waiting…_

_For the right moment,_

_To release a true black hole._

_A black hole that will form in the speck of selfishness within her heart._

_Darker and much more fearsome,_

_With a evil that will strike them all down._

**Author's Note: Wow. I feel emo-ish after re-reading this. O__o Hope you enjoyed and please review!**


	2. Wilting Tree

Ch. 2: Wilting Tree

_I stood there. Looking at her. I felt no fear or pain. A fact will always be a fact._

_The fact that I have lost._

_How did I lose? I didn't really think about it. I just stood there, trying to read her eyes. She stood there too. Then she walked toward me with a look in her eye._

_She held her hands close to her chest and her eyes looked hollow and empty, full of grief and sadness._

_Pity?_

_Hmph, how pathetic. That's what made them weak._

_He stood next to her, with his pitch-black blade, glimmering under the light, soaked in my blood. In his eyes, I saw frustration and disappointment. But how is it? Why did I see such things?_

_It didn't matter anymore, as I felt myself fading away. I reached out my hand toward the girl. Are you scared? She lifted her head and looked me straight in the eye._

_No._

_I see. _

_My vision blurred and my body began to crumble. _

_I have no emotions, so I will never understand yours._

_But I think I understand, what those humans, so easily called…_

_A heart._

**6 months later…**

Ichigo impatiently tapped his fingers on the wooden table. Something had been bothering him for quite a while, and yet he wasn't sure himself what it was.

Normally, all his days started out the same. He'd wake up, with a fresh feeling of the day. He'd walk around soul society greeting his friends, and hanging out, and occasionally, kicking some hollow butt.

But not a lot of that has been happening recently. Ever since Aizen returned Orihime from Hueco Mundo, less and less hollow had been appearing in the Seireitei and Human World. Apparently, Aizen had backed off the Winter War and decided to separate Soul Society from Hueco Mundo, leaving each side tending to their own business.

Or at least, that was what he was told.

Well, back to the subject. Each time Ichigo walked passed Orihime, he'd get this really awkward feeling, although he wasn't quite sure what it was. Whenever they met, he'd have trouble looking her in the eye.

That was the problem.

Ichigo sighed loudly.

"Hey Mr. Gloom-Head." A voice popped up from behind Ichigo, startling him a bit.

He turned around and glared, "Oh shut up, Renji."

The red headed shinigami rolled his eyes, "Yeah, whatever."

Ichigo just sighed and looked out the window. Sensing his depression, Renji sat down next to him, "Well, they let you occupy the 5th division…"

"…"

"And the division members seem to be very fond of you…"

"…"

Renji frowned and slapped Ichigo's back, "So why?"

Ichigo snarled and rubbed his shoulder, "Why what?"

"Why'd you reject the position of the 5th division captain??? You basically LIVE here now!"

Ichigo shrugged and turned his attention back to the window.

A black bird was sitting on a wilted tree, chirping.

Sighing, Renji asked, "Okay, what's the matter?"

Ichigo merely shrugged.

Renji flinched and grabbed Ichigo's kimono, yanked him up and shouted in his face, "Earth to Ichigo! What's the matter with you???"

Ichigo yelled back, "IT'S HER OKAY???"

Renji let go of him and stepped back a bit…

"It's her okay? I feel uneasy each time I see her!"

"You mean Rukia?"

Ichigo opened his mouth, but nothing came out. Rukia…Ichigo hadn't talked to her for quite some time now. Actually, he hadn't talked to anyone at all for a while.

Renji raised an eyebrow, "Well? Is it Rukia?"

Ichigo frowned, "No…it's Inoue…"

Renji furrowed his eyebrows, "What about her?"

"Each time I see her, I feel bad."

"Do you like her?"

"What kind of question is that…"

Renji crossed his arms, "So…"

Ichigo snapped angrily, "Look, I don't know alright?" Damn, why was this red head such a pain?? Renji shrugged, "'K, my captain's calling me, so yeah." Renji turned around and began to walk away. He paused, "Ichigo?"

"What now?"

"It's not your fault."

"…I know…but…"

Renji turned and faced Ichigo, with a serious look on his face, "Ichigo, consider it a miracle that Aizen released Orihime without harming as much as he could've."

Ichigo sighed, "But Inoue lost all her powers. If I had gotten there faster…"

"Then what? If you had gotten there faster, you'd be dead, so would all of us!"

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Look Ichigo, Aizen released Inoue without a scratch in exchange for her powers. No, not really. Hell, he didn't even take her powers! He just canceled them so that they could not be of any use!"

Ichigo looked out the window again.

The black bird on the wilted tree was pecking at the dead branches.

"Why do they keep it there?"

"What?"

Ichigo pointed, "That dead tree…"

"I don't know…they'll probably get rid of it…it's useless anyways…That's not the point and stop changing the subject! I know why you feel weird when you see Inoue, it's because you feel guilty. I'm going to say this one last time, it's not your fault!"

Renji shook his head and walked out the door. Ichigo didn't even look back. As Renji closed the door, he said one last thing, "Ichigo…"

"What?"

"With Rukia…Don't make a mistake…"

"Huh?"

"…Never mind…just remember, Inoue can still somehow become stronger, powers or no powers…"

Ichigo blinked, he didn't really get Renji's previous statement about Rukia. What the heck did Rukia have to do with this?

"…Um…okay."

"Oh god, I'm late…" Renji mumbled.

The door closed.

Ichigo leaned back in his chair and tried to clear his mind. His eyes wandered around and he glanced at Zangetsu.

Ichigo stood up and grasped the hilt. He tightened the strap on his back and headed for the door. He took one last look outside. The black bird chirped happily and rustled on the branch of the wilting tree.

Ichigo smiled slightly.

_There's always a chance. Just give it some time._

Ichigo faced his back toward the window and headed out the door.

He slammed the door shut and decided that he was going to talk to Orihime and get this feeling out of his gut. It was probably the right choice.

The black bird sang merrily on the wilted tree.

A gust of wind blew by and the tree branch snapped in half.

Then the bird flew away.

**Author's Note: So, what you think? Hope you enjoyed and please…please review! We really want some feedback or comments **


	3. Forgotten Reunion

Ch. 3: Forgotten Reunion

**Author's Note: Hey, thanks for all of you who read or reviewed out story! Another note, one of our OCs will show up only a little bit, not a lot, and won't really be important though. It's not Kaito or Yukiko (our original 2 OCs), it's actually the first one Ryo made.**

Tear them apart…

_And watch from the side._

_Tear them apart…_

_Without dirtying your hands._

_Watch them laugh _

_And watch them die_

* * *

Orihime yawned and stretched from her sitting position under the trees. The sun was shining, and the sky was clear, but for some reason, Orihime wasn't in such a good mood. She had a feeling that something was going to happen.

She shook her head, "No, now is not the time to get upset. Rukia's coming back from her mission…I am not going to greet a friend that I have no seen for 2 years with a frown…"

Before Hueco Mundo had been completely isolated from Soul Society and the Human World, a group of shinigami were sent to stay there, watching, until Seireitei was ready to completely cut connections from Hueco Mundo.

Rukia was chosen as one of them, accidentally perhaps. Before the mission, Rukia had received a letter from her captain asking her to volunteer. But when Rukia went to confirm it with Ukitake, he denied giving he such a letter. But, accident or not, Rukia decided that she might as well volunteered.

Simple as that.

Besides the "convincing Byakuya to agree part"

After all connections, including entrance and exits from Hueco Mundo were cut off, the shinigami there were ordered to stay there for another few months. They were left with only one more tool that would allow them to return to the Soul Society.

So the second they leave Hueco Mundo, it was officially broken from the other worlds.

Orihime sighed quietly and as she stood up, a cold aura surrounded her. Her eyes widened as she felt a chill go down her spine.

She turned around abruptly and a pair of ice blue eyes stared back at her.

"Orihime Inoue."

Orihime gasped and stepped back from the figure.

"W-What are you doing here? No, how did you get here without being detected?"

Without changing his stony expression, he whispered in a low voice, "It seem that you have forgotten…"

Orihime began to shiver, whether it was from fear or from the coldness emitting from that man, she didn't know.

Orihime turned and ran.

The man narrowed his eyes, "Run as much as you like. But in the end, it's you that will be running to us."

* * *

_Make them suffer._

_Then leave and let them laugh_

_Return after many years._

_Give you first appearance_

_And watch them break down into darkness._

* * *

Ichigo was strolling down the walkway.

"Oh come one!" Ichigo moaned as he reached a dead end, "Why the hell do they have to make this into a labyrinth??"

Ichigo stared up into the sky and squinted at the bright light. "…Hmm…when was the last time it rained…"

Ichigo turned his attention back to the maze he had been running among for the last 10 minutes.

"This is going to take a while…"

"Ichigo?"

Ichigo turned around and blinked a couple of times, "Rukia? Is that you?"

A raven-haired girl smiled and stepped forward, "Hey Ichigo. It's been a while hasn't it?"

Oh my god…Ichigo gawked.

Renji had told him that today was the day Rukia was coming back…Ichigo felt like hitting himself for forgetting.

Rukia smiled, despite the fact that she was a bit disappointed that Ichigo didn't greet her at the gate when she returned. Even Renji and Byakuya were there to meet her.

Ichigo smiled as well, despite his irritated mood a few minutes back. How could he not smile? He hadn't seen her ever since she was sent on a mission into Hueco Mundo a couple of years before the connection between Soul Society and Hueco Mundo was severed.

Ichigo felt really awkward. Rukia, his closest friend, hadn't seen him in two years. He felt like he should've run over and get all excited and whatnot.

But he didn't.

Adding to the awkward moment.

Speaking of awkward, Rukia seemed different, Ichigo frowned, "Rukia? Uh, have you always been that tall?"

Rukia laughed and rolled her eyes sarcastically, "No, Ichigo, I think you just shrunk…"

Ichigo crossed his arms. Same old Rukia. "Haha, Rukia. So, um…you're back from the mission…after what? 2 years?"

Rukia shrugged as if not quite sure herself, "Yeah, I think that's about right." She smiled, "You look just the same."

Ichigo was about to make some smart remark at Rukia about the same, but…Ichigo tilted his head. Rukia did look quite different. For starters, she was definitely not less than 5 feet tall anymore. He dark hair was longer than her shoulders and seemed more flowing. Her face and eyes no longer had that childish look it use to have.

Rukia seemed…less…boyish?

"Uh…I…" Ichigo fumbled with the words in his mouth, "Nice to have you back."

Rukia sneered, "Oh come on, is that really how your gonna greet me after 2 years?"

Ichigo grinned stupidly at his own comment, "Heh, sorry about that."

"So, where you going? I didn't see you at the gate when I came back…"

Ichigo bit his lip, "I, um…needed to see Inoue…"

Oh great. Ichigo flinched. I forgot to go meet Rukia and I tell her that it was because I went to go see Inoue…that just sounds wrong…God, how clueless am I? Even if I forgot that Rukia was coming back, why didn't I sense the gate's spiritual energy?

"Ichigo? About Rukia…don't mess up…"

Ichigo groaned…too late…sorry Renji.

Rukia's smiled dropped a bit, but as usual, it wasn't a selfish intent, "Ichigo…is this about Orihime losing her powers? You realize that it's not your fault…"

Ichigo was quite surprised that Rukia look this so well. "Well, I know, I just wanted to tell her something real quick."

Rukia nodded slowly, "You do that. Um…I-I think I should go greet my captain…"

Ichigo squirmed uncomfortably. He felt bad…really bad.

Rukia began to walk away, but paused and turned around, "Oh and Ichigo?"

"Yeah?"

"Get into another depression and you know what I will do!!!" Rukia shouted cheerfully with a threatening tone.

"Whatever!"

Just like they did 2 years ago.

Except this time, it was Rukia that seemed hurt.

* * *

_Guilt that devours the soul_

_Will lead them stepping into a endless tunnel_

_Every step full of regret_

_Every step full of confusion_

_Every step led by lies._

* * *

The man stood in the shadow of the towering buildings. His cold stare followed every movement as he inched his aura in his chosen direction.

Knowing that Inoue would avoid it.

Driving her like a sheep from the wolves.

Forcing her to encounter Kurosaki.

Blocking the spiritual force of the gate of Rukia's return.

He has been there for the last 2 years.

Watching every movement, controlling every action.

A messenger from his god.

Obeying every order.

In his hand he held the letter that Rukia had accidentally received 2 years ago.

He had been there, nothing escaping his eyes.

The foolish shinigami were running and fighting. No matter how much they ran or how much they fought, they would always end up falling into his hand.

They were pawns in a game that would eventually have no meaning.

Including Inoue.

No, she wasn't a pawn, she was the leader.

The leader that would drive the shinigami in destruction.

He crossed his arms and stepped out into the sunlight, reflecting off of his ice-cold eyes. The wind blew back his short, pitch-black hair that danced across the upper jawbone skull that was placed across his forehead.

"It's time…"

The Arrancar closed his eyes and the two, ice colored, waved stripes on his right cheek glowed.

He raised his arm and reached at the sky in front of him. He swiped his arm down and an explosion of spiritual energy ripped through the sky.

A loud shriek filled the air and the Arrancar melted back into the shadow.

The remains of the torn up letter drifted through the wind.

* * *

_Release the horror._

_That will expand the black hole._

_Tear them apart._

_Watch from a distance._

_Tear them apart…_

_From the inside out._

**Author's Note: Hope you enjoyed and pretty please review!!**


	4. A Voice

Chapter 4: A Voice

Rukia was pacing down the halls near the thirteenth division. Well, she really wanted to be hanging out with Ichigo…but it's been two years, and her captain was too ill to greet her when she returned. So it seemed reasonable for her to meet him instead of being with Ichigo at the moment…

Rukia shrugged of the thought of Ichigo forgetting that she was returning. She understood that he had been troubled lately and when he was depressed…well, he did stupid things.

That, as said earlier, she could understand.

What was tugging at her hair was that when she asked him for a reason, he said he had to see Orihime…

Rukia frowned a bit…Orihime. Now that she thought about it, Orihime didn't show up at the gate either.

Weird.

Rukia sighed with disappointment. The two people she considered friends both didn't show up.

"Rukia!" a loud obnoxious voice boomed down the empty halls.

"Renji?" Rukia turned around, "Ah! There you are…"

Renji gave her another one of his silly grins, "Hey! Shouldn't you be resting? Yeesh, you look even more tired than when I saw you at the gates."

Rukia tried to smile, "I just need to say hi to my captain."

Renji raised an eyebrow, "Uh, you okay?"

Rukia shrugged and turned away, "I'm fine…I gotta go."

"I knew it! Ichigo wasn't there was he?"

Rukia flinched, embarrassed that her disappointment was showing on her face. She turned around and snapped, "Don't you have something you need to do?"

Renji looked a taken back. After a short silence, he furrowed his tattooed eyebrows and said disapprovingly, "Yeah…yes there is something I have to do…I gotta go punch a certain carrot head in the face…"

Rukia relaxed her shoulders, "Sorry Renji…I need some time alone."

She walked off, leaving an ill tempered Renji standing in the middle of the corridors.

"Don't mess up I say, and what does he do? Messes up in less than five minutes…" Renji mumbled to himself.

Suddenly, some heavy energy echoed throughout his body. Spiritual pressure? Renji concentrated…

But there was nothing.

He looked around himself and peeked outside the window. There was nothing wrong outside. Renji frowned and walked off. He could've sworn he felt something.

* * *

Orihime gasped and panted and she stumbled across the ground, running. Trying. Using every single bit of strength she had to escape that horror chasing her.

The spiritual pressure was so small, yet so stinging to her soul. But the shinigami she ran past seemed unbothered by this, so what was going on?

Why was she the only one feeling this?

As the spiritual energy flickered on and off, appearing to her left and right, Orihime ran blindly, trying to get away from it.

Trying to escape that memory….

Orihime Inoue…

Orihime paled and gasped, not stopping her sore legs from running.

Orihime Inoue…

"No! Leave me alone!"

We let you return home…

Orihime stopped in her tracks and frantically looked around her.

But there was no one.

We allowed you to leave unscathed

_Do you remember the deal?_

Orihime felt tears forming in her eyes and she pounded her head, trying to stop the voice

How?

We let you live We let your friends live

_We let your world live_

_We let all existence to continue_

_By stopping the war…_

How did he get here?

_In exchange for your powers_

"No…no…no…. you can't be here…"

And for…

"Go away!"

_Obeying our orders_

"No! I didn't…"

_Obeying out orders the instance you stepped out of Hueco Mundo…_

"This is impossible! You can't be here…"

When Hueco Mundo was sealed off from Soul Society, she thought it was all just the past.

Once connections were severed permanently…

She thought she would be free.

That's the only reason she accepted the deal…

Did you really think that we've given up on the deal? We let everything you loved live…

That was your part.

_Now we are here for out part of the deal._

"NO!"

"Inoue?"

Orihime looked up, tears rolling down her face.

"K-Kurosaki-kun?"

Ichigo walked over, frowning, "Inoue? Are you okay?"

"…"

The voice was gone.

Orihime sniffed and rubbed her eyes, "I'm okay!" She tried to smile, "I just fell and landed…hard."

Ichigo blinked, "Um, you gonna be okay?"

Orihime nodded cheeringly. That's right, she didn't tell anyone about the full deal she made. Just the part about her powers…she didn't want to sound selfish…

Ichigo smiled, "Okay then…hey…can I talk to you about something?"

Orihime nodded.

Ichigo scratched the back of his head, "I know you're gonna say it's not my fault, but I still feel bad that you lost your powers…I mean, if I have gotten there earlier, I could've beaten Aizen…"

Still freaked from that voice in her head, Orihime blurted, "It was actually not such a bad deal…"

"…Deal? What are…?"

Orihime flinched at her own stupidity. "I-I…"

Ichigo raised an eyebrow, "Are you alright? You don't look so good…"

Orihime squeezed her eyes shut. She couldn't lie to him…

Orihime took a deep breath, and was about to shout out everything she had hidden from him in the last 2 years…

BOOM! A loud explosion echoed throughout the Seireitei. "What the hell?" He shouted, startled. He turned to Orihime, "Stay here, I'll go check it out." Orihime opened her mouth to protest, but Ichigo was already flash stepping away.

Orihime whimpered and leaned against the wall.

"How am I going to tell him?" She whispered to herself, "I can't just walk over and throw it in his face… I lied to him, and put everyone in danger…"

"That's right."

Orihime widened her eyes like a trapped animal.

The Arrancar stepped out from the shadows, "You can't tell him."

Orihime shivered, "I-I want to…no. I have to tell him. Hiding the truth for 2 years is long enough!"

With the same apathetic expression on his face, the Arrancar stated, "You can't. That is that."

"What do you…"

"If you tell him, he will hate you."

"Why would he…"

"Do you not understand?" The Arrancar interrupted, "You accepted our deal selfishly…"

"No! I had to save my friends!" Orihime sobbed.

"Saving your friends in exchange for obeying our every order? At the cost of the world's safety? Even you should've realized that we had our intentions."

Orihime fell silent. Why did this Arrancar have to make her sound like a criminal?

The Arrancar continued, "Normally, any human or even shinigami would accept the offer like you did. So if you told them the instant you returned, your friends would've understood. But 2 years. You hid it from them for 2 years. You deceived them for so long."

The Arrancar slouched back, "Tell them now, and you'll be branded as a traitor, a spy. No one, especially your friends, will ever trust you again."

Orihime opened her mouth, but didn't know what to say.

Yes.

They would hate her.

Orihime clenched her fists, trying to stop shaking. She didn't even notice the Arrancar step closer to her, "It's not too late."

"What?"

"It's not too late. You can tell them now. They will hate you, but you will be saving them."

Orihime swallowed. Why was the enemy trying to give her advice?

The Arrancar stopped in his steps.

"But…you can protect them and have them love you."

"…" Orihime stared at him. She glanced at his eyes. Ice blue, cold, emotionless. But unlike any other Arrancar, his eyes showed no feelings. Even Ulquiorra's cold, heartless eyes showed his thoughts: Disapproval, superiority, not caring.

Nothing.

This man's eyes showed nothing, as if it was a sheet of ice blocking his heart from the world.

That's if he even had one.

Orihime averted her eyes and looked to the side. Her hesitation clearly indicated that she wanted to tell her friends and not be hated.

The Arrancar leaned forward, "Do what I say."

"Huh?"

"Do what I say, and your friends will trust you and be safe at the same time."

Orihime shook her head, refusing to believe anything this subordinate of Aizen said.

"I don't care, I'm going to protect my friends whether they hate me or not. I won't fall for your tricks." Orihime tried to sound strong and fearless, but her voice cracked as they struggled up her throat.

She turned abruptly and began to walk away.

"Listen to me, and your friends will be safe."

She continued walking.

"Listen to me, and your friends will still trust you."

Orihime tried to block his voice out.

"Listen to me…"

Orihime walked faster.

"And he will love you."

Orihime stopped dead in her tracks.

Not believing what he said, she slowly turned around, and saw that the Arrancar was pointing his index finger at her.

"Listen to me."

Orihime stood there, startled. How could anyone make a person love…

But by the way he spoke, the way he moved, the way his eyes stared straight into her soul, Orihime knew that he wasn't bluffing.

Her thoughts were interrupted as a sudden wave a strong spiritual energy bursted through the sky. The feeling was so powerful that, adding to the fact that Orihime had no powers, she could barely breathe.

She held up her arms in self-defense.

A low voice whispered, "Listen to me. Show no resistance…"

For some reason, although Orihime's mind told her to fight back, her heart told her to drop her arms down. She knew it was pointless; she had no powers. She had nothing.

"This is your first chance…"

Orihime tried to cry for Ichigo, but her voice broke down under the Arrancar's pressure.

"Obey my orders…"

A shining aura began to flash from the Arracnar's finger…

"Obey my orders…"

A loud eruption deafened her ears, and a white flash blinded her eyes.

"…And he will love you."

Did she believe him? Orihime had no idea.

The last thing she heard was Ichigo's voice shouting her name.

That flicker of hope in her heart was the spark of hell's flame.

* * *

**Author's Note: Hey! We know most of our reviewers are Ichiruki fans, so don't worry, Rukia will be getting much more screen time in the next couple of chapters! **

**And, the story's going to be moving faster in the next up coming chapters **

**Okay, who heard the news? The Warner Bros. (Disclaimer: just in case) is trying to make a LIVE ACTION movie out of Bleach! As excited as we are…we kinda have a feeling its gonna suck. T.T **

**So far, we've heard that every anime-adapted live action movie was horrible, except for Death Note, which was awesome. (And we do not own) :D**

**What do you guys think?**

**So, hope you enjoyed and please review!**


	5. An Oath

Chapter 5: The Oath

_Thump._

"Inoue!"

_Thump._

_Thump._

"Please move aside Kurosaki-san…"

_Thump._

_Thump._

_Thump._

Orihime felt her uneasy heart beating within her body.

"Inoue!"

"…Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime struggled to open her eyes, which were greeted by a bright light and several moving figures.

"W-What's happening…"

Everything she saw was nothing but blurs. All she was able to make out was the constant shouts pounding against her eardrums….and red…lots of it.

Orihime clenched her fists and tried to sit upward, but was instantly pushed gently back down by a person she saw as Kotetsu Isane.

Orihime whimpered. Why was the medical squad here?

Orihime moaned and lifted her trembling hands into the light…

Blood.

As her vision cleared up, Orihime saw the worried and fearful face of Ichigo, and instantly, she knew something was wrong.

The Arrancar! Orihime gasped and once again tried to sit up, but was responded by shouts and several hands trying to keep her still.

Where's all this blood coming from? Orihime moaned and squirmed around are the 4th division members ran around frantically.

"Inoue…" Ichigo whispered, "Oh god….I'm sorry…"

"What?" Orihime choked.

Ichigo looked down to her feet, silent.

"K-Kuro…I'm okay…maybe I fell or something…but it doesn't hurt…"

Ichigo just closed his eyes tightly and looked away.

Orihime felt confused. It was true though. She felt a little dizzy, but that's all…what was?

Orihime suddenly felt fear spreading throughout her body. Trembling, she forced her head to look down at her body. Orihime's eyes widened with shock and she began to scream.

Not being able to bear the sight of her own body, Orihime began to choke and cough, spreading blood everywhere, until she passed out cold.

Ichigo screamed for her name as the 4th division captain came and pulled him back.

Unohana then ordered for a sheet of cloth…

To cover up the enormous, bloody hole in Orihime's stomach, where the flesh had been ripped clean out.

* * *

Rukia panted as she flash stepped as quickly as her could down the halls of the 4th division.

"How the hell did this happen?" Rukia mumbled to herself as she bursted into the room, "Ichigo! Is Orihime…"

Rukia was silenced by what she saw. Orihime was lying in bed with several tubes attached to her body, tanks of medicine were filling the room, and multiple scanners and machines were connected to her head and neck.

Next to her was Ichigo.

Still recovering from her shock, Rukia managed to whisper, "Ichigo…what happened?"  
Ichigo said nothing, his eyes staring at what was left of Orihime.

"…" Rukia decided that now was not the time, and she walked out of the room, quietly closing the door behind her.

"Rukia!"

Rukia looked up and saw Renji running toward her.

"Renji! What the hell happened?"

Renji screeched to a stop and took a breath, "I don't know, but Unohana-taichou said that it was definitely the work of a hollow."

"A hollow?" Rukia frowned, "But…that's not possible…"

Renji crossed his arms, "Exactly why the captains are currently freaking out a bit."

Rukia nodded slowly, "What else do you know?"

Renji shrugged and looked out the window, "Not much. The head captain called an emergency meeting for captains and lieutenants…I gotta get going." Renji turned away, "Don't worry, I'll tell you what I know later!"  
Rukia felt confused and frustrated. It wasn't possible. Since 2 years ago, no hollow was able or allowed to infiltrate the Soul Society. So how in the world did a hollow manage to get in…without being detected?

Rukia growled and punched the wall. She personally was sent to Hueco Mundo to complete this task. She was so sure that nothing went wrong.

But for whatever reason, Orihime was now severely injured…

And so was Ichigo…

Rukia took in a breath. She was mainly responsible for the complete sealing off of the connection between Hueco Mundo and Soul Society. Now that that seal was broken…Rukia knew it was her job to find out why.

* * *

"Attention!" Yamamoto boomed.

"After 2 years of peace, it seems that a hollow somehow managed to enter the soul society…and even more importantly…" Yamamoto glanced around the room, "Undetected…This will not be accepted!"

"Um, excuse me captain", Hisagi said.

Yamamoto nodded in his direction for him to continue.

"Head Captain, how do you know that it was a hollow…maybe a rogue shinigami?"

"Not possible," Unohana cut in. "The injury sustained was too great to be the work of a shinigami…the actual blast that injured the victim did not have any hint of shinigami spiritual reishi around the wound."

Mayuri arched an eyebrow, "What makes you think that just looking at the wound can show the reishi…?"

Unohana stated as-a-matter-a-factly, "What I mean is, the blast was so great that…" Unohana hesitated a bit.

Yamamoto coughed, "Please continue."

Nodding, Unohana looked around the room, "The blast was so great that parts of it got locked into the victim's flesh, and continued to burn outward from the original wound."

That was all she needed to say to make Renji lose his appetite.

Mumbles filled the room; most of them were from the lieutenants, as the captains remained silent.

"Using that reishi, we found that it contained the spiritual powers of a hollow-like creature." Unohana finished up.

Yamamoto grunted.

The captains all looked at him, awaiting their orders.

Yamamoto stood up from his chair, realizing that the peace he was hoping for had ended early then he expected.

"How long until we track down the actual source of the reishi?"

Mayuri answered this time, "At least 7 days captain…"

"Alright then." Yamamoto raised his voice, "Until that day comes, I want seated officers posted at every Seireitei gate, and all captain classes on guard and patrolling the streets. With any reasonable suspicion, you are permitted to attack and arrest."

The room remained silent. Yamamoto took that as an agreement, "Dismissed!"

On the way out, Renji couldn't help but feel rather sick…he'd seen large blasts like ceros and such, but he never heard of one that can continue to spread…

Renji rubbed his head. Yeesh, the one time of absolute peace in Soul Society was gone just like that. Oh well, Renji thought, better go visit Inoue.

As Renji approached Inoue's room, he began to sense a familiar spiritual pressure.

Ichigo?

Frowning slightly, Renji walked over to Inoue's door and was about to knock.

"…" Renji stopped, and instead, he lowered his hand to the doorknob as he began to hear voices whispering behind the door.

Renji pushed his head against the door as he quietly creaked it open, not large enough to be seen, but at least so that he could hear.

"Kurosaki kun…"

Inoue? Renji paused. How was she able to recover enough to speak so quickly?

Knowing that he was being rather sneaky, Renji peeked through the gap in the door.

Orihime, still attached by tubes and machines, was still lying on the bed, talking to Ichigo, who was sitting on a chair besides her.

Holding her hand.

Renji flinched.

"K-Kurosaki kun…why are you?"

"Inoue, this is all my fault, I should never had left you, knowing that you were injured…"

Before Orihime could reply, Ichigo gripped her hand tighter.

"Orihime, I swear, I will protect you. I'll be by your side no matter what."

Orihime's eyes widened.

_Obey me. Show no resistance and he will love you._

Renji almost stumbled, trying to keep his balance.

What the hell? What the hell was Ichigo saying?

Renji began to feel his face heat up with anger and frustration. He peeked through the door again, and this time he saw them holding hands, Orihime smiling, and Ichigo with guilt looming in his eyes,

Renji shook his head and sighed. As he quietly closed the door shut, he turned around, his mind full of confusion and worries.

Renji looked up, and stopped dead in his tracks.

Rukia stood there, right by Inoue's door. Her face was blank and expressionless.

Oh crap…did she hear them?

"R-Rukia…" Renji stuttered, "How long were you…"

Rukia twitched, as if suddenly coming out of a trance.

"Oh Renji! Um, I just got here. Why?"

Renji asked carefully, "Did you hear anything?"

Rukia frowned, "Um, hear what?"

"…Nothing"

Ruki rolled her eyes, "Yeesh, you're annoying. I just came to visit."

"Um, Inoue is still…sleeping. I…" Renji didn't want to hurt Rukia, so he decided to save the strawberry's butt, "I just got here with Ichigo, and he's inside…"

He added, "Ichigo's about to leave, and I don't think we should bother Inoue…and well…I going to go first."

Rukia nodded.

Renji forced a smile and walked off.

Just as soon as Renji exited the door, Ichigo came out of Orihime's room. When he saw Rukia, his faced paled with shock.

"Rukia. Um, how long were…"

"I just got here," Rukia cut in.

Ichigo avoided her eyes and nodded, "Inoue is resting, she's waken up for quite a while now after the attack."

"Um, why did you ask how long I was…? I mean, did I interrupt something?"

"No reason. Just wondering." Ichigo snapped rather rudely.

Rukia raised an eyebrow, "You know Renji…"

"What about him? Speaking of which, when is he coming?" Ichigo asked, trying to change the subject about Orihime.

Rukia's smiled dropped and she shrugged.

After an awkward silence, Ichigo said, "Well, I have to go."

"…"

Ichigo walked past Rukia, and as she looked at him, he turned his face away, avoiding her eyes.

Rukia stared straight forward as Ichigo walked past her.

Shooting a glance back at him, she saw Ichigo walked out the door…

His back turned to her…

Without looking back.

"…" Rukia slumped against the wall and looked at the ceiling light, flickering on and off.

"Ichigo…"

He lied to her. She knew that Renji was lying, but just didn't want her to get hurt. But Ichigo had lied, and avoided her.

He had sworn to Orihime, keeping his distance from others, and then he had lied to her.

That's right.

She had heard everything.

So why was she the one….

"It seems that you have accepted…" Her thoughts were interrupted by a low whisper coming from Orihime's bedroom. Rukia jumped and shot her head at the direction of the sound.

What was that? Rukia slowly inched toward the door so she could hear.

"I don't…" Orihime whispered back.

Rukia narrowed her eyes, who was in her room? Ichigo didn't mention anyone else.

She looked through the crack in the door and made out a dark figure in the shadows.

"Follow me." It said.

Rukia almost gasped aloud as she saw Orihime stand up from her bed, taking off the tubes connected to her body that was supposedly keeping her alive.

As the dark figure and Orihime walked toward the window, Rukia grabbed the hilt of her zanpakuto and pushed the door open.


	6. Red Rose

Chapter 6: Red Rose

**Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews. I see a couple of you want Orihime dead right now and as tempting that is, its not gonna work out here…at the moment. You never know what's gonna happen. XD Okay, just to let you guys know, the Arrancar that has been talking to Orihime is NOT Ulquiorra. He is our first OC character…. meh we'll explain in the story later on. But the prolouge of this story (ch. 1) IS Ulquiorra's POV. But Ulquiorra is only in the 1st ch and a bit of ch 2.**

"Inoue!" Rukia pushed the door open and jumped in the room with her zanpakuto drawn.

"What?" Orihime frantically stepped back from the window. "Rukia? Why are you?"

Rukia quickly glanced around the room.

No one else was there.

Orihime's face paled, "R-Rukia?" She nervously glanced at the corner of the room by the window where the Arrancar was standing calmly. "I-I can…."

Feeling rather anxious, Rukia interrupted her, "Orihime, who was in here just now?"

Orihime frowned and looked back at the corner of the room. What was going on? The Arrancar was standing with them in the room. It was clear as day.

Surprisingly, the Arrancar just stood there without any effort to conceal himself from the one who had intruded upon their conversation.

"Um…"

Rukia saw an uneasy look in Orihime's eyes and she as well looked at the corner of the room. Orihime held her breath, if Rukia found out….

But judging by the confused look on Rukia's face, Orihime began to wonder whether Rukia could see the Arrancar.

Rukia raised an eyebrow, "Orihime, I know I saw someone in here. Who was he? Where did he go?"

The Arrancar stared right into Orihime's eyes, as if telling her something. But just looking into his eyes made Orihime feel light headed. All she saw was…well, nothing. She saw no emotion. His eyes showed no reflection of his soul, they were'nt even vacuous. His eyes were just, there.

Orihime shivered, "I-I don't know what you're talking about…no one was here…"

"…" Rukia didn't bother to question her further, for it seemed rather obvious she wasn't going to say anything.

She then noticed how Orihime was standing by the window, constantly peering at the corner of the room as if she had never seen it before.

Finally, after a long awkward silence, Rukia took notice of Orihime standing quite far from her bed instead of being in it. Rukia narrowed her eyes, "Orihime, you're still severely injured…shouldn't you be in bed…and not taking off the medical tubes attached to your body?"

Orihime flinched, "Ah…haha….of course!" She faked a cheerful smile, "I was just feeling if um…I was getting better!"

But no matter what Orihime said, Rukia couldn't help but feel suspicious.  
Rukia trusted her senses,so she knew for a fact that Orihime was talking to a man in this room just as Ichigo had left the building.

"So, do you want me to stay? Keep you company or something?" Rukia asked slowly.

"No!" Orihime shouted rather frantically.

Rukia frowned slightly. Orihime flushed with embarrassment, "I'm sorry Rukia. I didn't mean it that way…I just want to sleep a while…I don't want you to waste your time or anything…besides…about the big accident that's been going around in the Seireitei?"

Rukia nodded, "Alright, if it'll make you feel better…". Rukia smiled and walked toward the door.

Orihime bit her lip. Rukia heard her conversation with the Arrancar…what else did she…

"Rukia?"

"…Yeah?"

"Did you meet Ichigo on your way here?"

"…Yeah, I did."

"Were you here when he was in my room?"

"…"

"Y-You don't have to answer if you don't want to…"

Rukia didn't want to lie. But Orihime was injured, and she knew if she told Orihime how she heard her conversation with Ichigo, Orihime would just feel worse. She felt ambivalence swirling around in her head. She didn't want to lie, but…

Rukia forced a large smile on her face, "What are you talking about? When I got here Ichigo was already walking out the door!"

"Oh." Orihime smiled. "Thanks for stopping by."

Rukia nodded and opened the door. As she walked past the corner of the room, she felt a wave of coldness and darkness flow throughout her body. Rukia gasped and turned toward the corner, making Orihime's face drain of blood.

"…" No one was standing at the corner. And yet, she felt as if millions of blades were being pointed at her throat. Rukia narrowed her eyes. Orihime…. she knows something…Rukia shook her head.

_God what's wrong with me? I'm just imagining things…and why am trying to hard to believe Orihime's involved? _

Rukia's eyes softened. She was trying to fool herself into thinking this chaos was related to Orihime…probably because she heard her conversation with Ichigo…how Ichigo swore to protect her…

As she closed the door and walked down the hallway, Rukia felt sick at herself for trying to believe that Orihime was talking to someone, to believe that Orihime was lying, to believe that Orihime somehow knew about the attack on Seirei….

Rukia's eyes widened. "Wait a minute…" If she recalled correctly, Orihime mentioned about a "big accident" that happened. But Orihime was unconscious when this news was publicly spread…so how did she know what had attacked her and how DID she know it was causing a panic among the shinigami?

Rukia frowned and mentally slapped herself. There she was again, trying to believe Orihime was "bad". Ichigo probably told her about the details of the incident.

Sighing, Rukia walked down the empty hallways.

Back in the room, Orihime moaned and plopped on the bed. That was close, too close. Orihime drooped her head. She felt bad about lying to Rukia. Rukia was such a good friend…

"If you're not careful and let this happen again, it'll all be over." The Arrancar said flatly.

Orihime glared at him. If he had never came into her life… "I can't believe I actually lied to her just to make sure you weren't caught."

The Arrancar didn't even look at Orihime, "If I have no mistaken, you lied to her so for yourself, not for me. I can tell if you had the chance you'd kill me yourself if you were…" The Arrancar stepped toward the window, "…capable." Orihime bit her lip and tried to keep her cool.

The Arrancar turned his back against her, "But she lied to you too."

"What?"

"You asked whether she heard your conversation with the substitute."

"So?"

"She lied."

"You mean she heard?" Orihime gasped. Oh god, Rukia must hate me… Orihime squeezed her eyes shut and whimpered.

"She lied, you lied. It's even." The Arrancar said nonchalantly.

Orihime paused, "Wait, how did you know she was lying? You weren't there…"

"How I found out does should not be the matter here." The Arrancar stepped toward Orihime. "If you listen to what I say, your friends will be safe and they will treasure and protect you."

"But Rukia already hates me!"

"No she doesn't. Besides…you decided to listen to my first order, and the substitute already gave himself to you, has he not?" The Arrancar asked emotionlessly.

Orihime opened her mouth but no words came out.

True…Ichigo did promise to be by my side…Orihime thought.

"But, at least tell me where this is all leading! Why are you helping me?"

"That does not concern you. Just follow along with what happens next and do as you wish until we meet again." And with that, the Arrancar disappeared.

_Hand her a red rose_

_And watch her smile with joy_

_Make her laugh and love_

_As she holds onto the rose_

_And exposes its true nature_

_Its thorns will pierce her skin_

_And make her bleed_

_But she won't care, or even notice_

_As her eyes are engulfed by that beautiful red color_

_She will bleed until she no longer breathes_

_Until her body is blown away as dust_

_But no matter,_

_She will still love that rose_

* * *

"…" Ichigo waved his hand at a fly that constantly buzzed around his head.

It just kept coming back.

"Grrr…." Ichigo snarled and slashed at the fly with a rolled up magazine, "Damn fly get lost!"

Ichigo stopped his crazy waving as he heard his door creak open. "What do you want?" Ichigo moaned. He really didn't bother to see who it was, because he didn't care. He was in a crappy mood, but he wasn't sure why.

The room was silent. Ichigo twitched, "Look, I asked you a question!" He snapped and turned toward the door in his chair.

"What the?" Ichigo frowned. No one was in his room, and the door was shut. "Oh great, now I'm imagining things!" He muttered.

He spun his chair back to stare out the window. This time, the door creaked open again.

"Aw…stupid door is screwed up…" Ichigo mumbled. Suddenly, a powerful hand slammed against his shoulder and spun Ichigo in a 180 turn.

Ichigo found himself staring into the eyes of a pissed off Renji.

"Dude, you alright?" Ichigo asked. Although he said this, Ichigo really couldn't care less at the moment.

Renji growled, "My ass I'm alright!"

Ichigo frowned and pushed Renji's hand away, "What's your problem?"

Crossing his arms, Renji said rather loudly, "How could you do that to Rukia?"

Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows, "What?" Okay, now he was confused.  
"I can't believe you just let your messed up brain make the dumbest mistake in your life!" Renji shoyted angrily.

"Okay, now you just sound idiotic. What the hell are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about Rukia you retard!"

"I noticed that much."

Renji took in a deep breath to calm himself down, but it seemed it wasn't working, "I was at the hospital when you were talking to Inoue!"

"!" Didn't see that coming.

"Wh-What? You were spying on me?"  
"No I wasn't! I walked past your room and I heard you say the stupidist thing you have EVER said!"

At this rate, Ichigo was getting irritated. He stood up angrily, "Look Renji, I made a choice. If you don't like it well I'm sorry, but I know what I'm doing!"

Renji raised an eyebrow, "Oh do you?"  
"That's right! I'm going to protect Inoue so I won't have to see her get hurt anymore! I'll stay with her forever if I have to! At the cost of anything!"

Renji sighed, "Including hurting Rukia?"

Shocked by Renji's unexpected statement, Ichigo began to stutter, "W-What? I wouldn't hurt…"

Renji interrupted him, his temper fading, "Too late. You already did."

Ichigo widened his eyes and grabbed Renji by his collar, "What are you talking about?"

Renji tried not to roll his eyes at Ichigo's stupidity, "Rukia heard it! All of it okay?"

Ichigo released Renji and just starede, "She what? No, I asked and she said…"

"She said she didn't hear right? Well, she did! And you know what?" Renji snapped, "Do you want to know what her face was like when she heard? She looked liked someone just stabbed her with a sword! Being the person she is, she's probably going to go on and smile and pretend she never heard anything!" Renji finished with a breath.

For a second, Ichigo just stood there. Suddenly, he bolted toward the door, and it didn't take a detective to figure out where he was going…

"Don't tou think you caused her enough trouble?" Renji shouted. But Ichigo ignored him and continued to run.

* * *

Rukia sighed as she walked down the path of the 13th division garden. She opened up the letter in her hand that she had received earlier from her captain.

It was a document given to all shinigami asking for volunteers for a mission to Hueco Mundo. Rukia moaned and sat down on a rock. It was rather obvious that people expected her to go. After all, she did return successfully just a while ago. But, she really didn't feel like going back. On second thought, maybe she needed some time alone there…Rukia got up and continued walking.

* * *

"Oh come on, where are you?" Ichigo ran around the 13th division, struggling to sense Rukia's presense, which he still couldn't properly master.

As he turned to corner, he found himself crashing into Orihime. "Ah! I-Inoue! Sorry…wait…are you well enough to be out here?"

Orihime blushed, "Well, yeah, Unohana-san said that she was surprised on my fast recovery."

"Oh. That's good." Ichigo scratched his head. He was rather uncofortable with this situation, considering he made a serious oath to her a while ago.

Orihime blushed some more, "K-Kuorosaki-kun?"

"yeah?"

"What you said to me earlier…"

_Oh dear god not this…not now…_Ichigo was in the rush to find Rukia

"D-Did you mean it?" Orihime whispered.

Ichigo blushed from embarrassment, "I-I uh…"

Orihime saw the anxious look in his eyes and lowered her head with sadness and dissapointment, "Oh sorry. I-I shouldn't have asked…"

With that, she turned and began to walk away.

_What was I thinking? I let my hopes up too high…Kurosaki-kun only said that to make me feel better…_Orihime tried to show her sadness.

"Inou…Orihime!"

"!" Orihime turned and looked at Ichigo…he never called her by her first name before.

Ichigo bit his lip, "I meant it. Every word of it." Ichigo smiled at her.

Her body suddenly filled with happiness and joy, Orihime ran over and hugged Ichigo tightly.

Ichigo felt his face turn red,why? He wasn't quite sure himself, "O-Orihime? Y-You…"

Orihime buried her face in his kimono, "Kurosaki-kun…I've always kinda…liked you…Oh god I sound so stupid…" Orihime squeaked and lowered her head as much as she could, fearing Ichigo';s reaction.

"…" Ichigo didn't know what to say. He put his hand on her shoulder and smiled, "It's okay…I promised right? I'll protect you forever…"

Orihime looked up at him and smiled, tears in her eyes.

Ichigo smiled back, but somewhere in his heart told him his smile was fake.

Orihime hugged him tighter, and being in this situation, Ichigo placed both his hands on her shoulders.

Then he looked up and his face fell cold.

Rukia.

She stood on the other side of the garden.

Staring at him with wide eyes.

"R…" Ichigo didnlt know what to say. He wanted to run over and explain, but he couldn't leave Orihime just like…

He looked back at Rukia with fearful eyes.

Rukia held a piece of paper in her hands. She held it up, looked at it, then she lowered it back down and turned her back on him and Orihime.

Ichigo began to gently push Orihime away, but then he saw her back facing him. Rukia turned her head slightly and gave him a sad smile.

During that instant, Ichigo felt as if his heart had shattered.

Rukia gripped the letter in her hand tightly and walked away, leaving Ichigo staring after her.

**Author's Note: Oh no! What will happen next? Seriously though, no offense to Ichihime fans, but being Ichiruki fans, we felt kinda sick typing that Orihime confession part. XP Hope you enjoyed and please review!**


	7. A Beating Dream

Chapter 7: A Beating Dream

Ichigo didn't know what to do. He just stood there with his mouth slightly gawking as Rukia walked away from the scene.

Orihime sniffled and finally released her grip on Ichigo.

Ichigo forced a smile on his face as Orihime looked up at him with teary eyes. "I-Inou….er…Orihime, I have to go talk to some shinigami about the incident. Um…will you be alright?"

Orihime rubbed away a tear and smiled, "Yeah."

Trying his best not to look eager to get away, Ichigo walked quickly after the direction Rukia took off.

Orihime frowned slightly, not quite sure of what he was doing.

Meanwhile, Rukia walked into Ukitake's office.

"Um…taichou?"

Ukitake turned around and grinned, "Kuchiki? Can I help you with something?"

Rukia nodded slowly and walked over.

The grin on Ukitake's face slowly sank into a straight line as Rukia handed a document over to him, "…What's this?"

Rukia glanced away from her captain's eyes; "Um…it's the registration form…for the mission back to Hueco Mundo…"

Ukitake held the papers up to his face, "Yes I see…but…" Ukitake looked at Rukia, "This mission was suppose to be for well…seated officers and…"

Rukia shrugged a bit.

"Kuchiki, I don't mean I don't think that you're capable. It's just that you just got back. Maybe you should just try to relax and let other shinigami take care of this."

Rukia furrowed her eyebrows, "This incident is probably because when we went to Hueco Mundo in the first place, we made some sort of mistake. I just want to fix it."

Sighing, Ukitake got up from his seat, "Rukia, you looked rather troubled. Are you thinking this clearly? This time it won't be like the last." He raised an eyebrow, "It'll be much more dangerous."

Rukia's eyes softened, "I just…feel like Hueco Mundo is where I should belong right now…"

"Less distractions?"

"Yeah…wait…what?"

Ukitake sighed again, "Rukia, you shouldn't be using this mission as a way to get away from problems…"

"Rukia!" Before Ukitake could finish his sentence, Ichigo came bursting through the poor, panting heavily.

"Rukia! I need to talk to you."

"…Ichigo I'm busy…" She objected, but Ichigo just ran to her, grabbed her arm and dragged her outside.

Although he wasn't quite sure what was going on, Ukitake shook his head sadly.

"Whatever you're doing Ichigo…you'd better stop Rukia from making a big mistake…" He paused, "Unless you made one first…oh geez…"

"What?" Rukia snapped angrily as she brushed herself off.

Ichigo took a breath, "Rukia I need to talk to you about something…"

"Couldn't it wait?" Rukia frowned and changed her tone.

"What do you want?" She asked flatly.

Ichigo bit his lip, "Rukia…about earlier…"

"…"

The garden of squad 13 suddenly had an intense moment of awkward silence.

"Rukia…I'm sorry…but I had to…" Ichigo didn't know how to word his feelings properly.

"Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong." Rukia said bluntly.

"Look, I know you're upset…"

"Why would I be upset?"

"…Rukia…"

"What?"

"I…."

Rukia closed her eyes and sighed, "Ichigo I'm a bit busy…can't this wait?" Rukia started to walk off but suddenly, Ichigo grabbed her arm tightly.

Rukia widened her eyes a bit, and then returned to her bored expression.

"…Look, Ichigo…"

Ichigo kept silent.

The finally he managed to whisper, "Rukia, I'm really sorry…"

Rukia didn't say anything.

Ichigo lowered his head, "It was my fault Inoue lost her powers and got hurt and…well…she even said it herself, she really needs me right now…"

"…"

Ichigo looked up from his feet, "I'm sorry Rukia…"

Rukia raised an eyebrow and look at her arm, where Ichigo's hand was gripping.

"Ichigo, if you really feel so responsible, than the choice you made was the right choice…"

"But…"  
Rukia turned away. "You're not suppose to apologize for making the right choice," She whispered quietly.

Ichigo felt as if his heart was shattering into little pieces, "Rukia, I-I don't know what to do…"

Rukia looked at Ichigo for a second.

"I don't either…but in two days I'm leaving for Hueco Mundo…"

"What?" Ichigo released his grip on Rukia's arm in shock, "W-Why?"

Rukia shrugged, "I have unfinished business there…"

"Urgg…" Ichigo clenched his fists in frustration; things were not getting easier. "Rukia, you don't have to…come on don't just leave…you just got back…"

Rukia sighed, "Ichigo there are thing I have to do there…just like, how there are thing you have to do here…"

Okay, that part hurt.

"Rukia I…I don't know how to say this…" Ichigo shoved his hand into his hair, "There are you know…well…people I have to protect and there's the person I want to protect…and…"

"Ichigo," Rukia said firmly, "You swore to be with Orihime…and she's my best friend. I won't forgive you if you hurt her…"

Ichigo stuttered and Rukia began to walk away. He didn't even finish his sentence yet…

"Rukia, Inoue is…"

Rukia paused, "And stop calling her Inoue. It's Orihime…"

"Rukia please just listen to me!"  
Rukia said in a low voice, "I am leaving in two days Ichigo. That's that." She turned around and smiled at Ichigo, "Wish you happiness."

"Rukia but I…"

Ichigo just stared as Rukia's shadow disappeared behind the building.

Ichigo closed his eyes tightly and leaned against the wall. _Rukia…why do you always smiled when you are in pain? Why did you say I made the right choice? _Ichigo sank to the ground. _Why is it that I can never protect the person I want to…Why does making the right choice hurt so much?_

His body began to shake…

_Rukia…I…._

From a few feet away, Orihime stood behind the corner of the building, trying to understand what she had just overheard.

* * *

Ichigo wasn't the only one having problems. Nearby, Renji was struggling to process the fact that Rukia was leaving in two days. No matter how much he refused, Rukia had merely ignored him. She wasn't acting like herself lately. Yes, she smiled and laughed, but for some reason, every smile and laugh she emitted felt like a dagger puncturing his heart. And it didn't take a genius to find out what was going on.

Later that night, everyone went on his or her usual routine, and everything seemed normal. Ichigo went back to the 5th division, Renji to the 6th, Orihime to the hospital barracks, and everything was quiet, as if nothing had happened.

Not far from where Orihime's accident occurred, a figure stood atop a building, watching the movement of every shinigami that patrolled the area.

The Arrancar glanced at the 5th division barracks.

_This is the rain that drowns your world._

_This is the rain that came after you thought it stopped._

_The one who stopped the first rain…_

_Is struggling for a breath in this new ocean_

_I will stop this rain for you this time_

_You will smile this time_

_And then you will watch as your world dries into a desert_

_As you watch everyone fade into ashes._

The Arrancar stepped onto the slanted roof of the building. "Those who do not have hearts do not feel pain. I will make sure that your heart will forever be branded into your world…"

The wind howled through the cloudy sky.

"…Shinigami…"

As the moon shone, another figure climbed onto the roof. The Arrancar turned and faced his new guest, "You seemed to remember that I am still here…"

"…" Orihime kept quiet as she tried to keep a distance.

"Is there something you want?"

"…Rukia's leaving in one more day…"

"So it seems."

"Did you do it?" Orihime asked in a voice so quiet, the wind easily covered it up.

"No. She made that decision herself." The Arrancar said with, as usual, emotionlessly.

Orihime bit her lip, "Ichigo's upset…it…hurts me to see him like this."

"…" The Arrancar was silent

"…At least for now…I think Rukia should stay…" Orihime whispered.

She heard his footsteps through the complete darkness only lit by the moon. Orihime tried to get a good close look at this Arrancar, because other times she was too busy watching his empty eyes to notice anything else about him. Although it was hard to see in the darkness, she noticed that the Arrancar was young, similar to a human in his 20's. She squinted her eyes, trying to make out the rest of him. Short hair, and an upper hollow jaw mask across his forehead…and two wave-like stripe markings on his right cheek.

"I shall assume you are not here to stare at me…"

Orihime flinched and stepped back at his sudden comment. She frowned. How did he know? It was pitch black, the only time they could see was when the moon came from behind the clouds once in a while.

"Well, can you…somehow let Rukia stay for a while longer?" She asked nervously.

She heard his footsteps stop.

"I-I" Orihime stuttered, "If it'll make Ichigo happy…then…" Her sentenced faded away. "I want to see Ichigo happy. And Rukia makes him…"

"You're lying."

"Wha-?"

"You want her to stay so that the boy will like you for who you are, not because the one he cared for has left and was using you as a substitute."

"N-No…I wouldn't…"

"…" No response.

After a few minutes passed with no response, Orihime looked around confusedly. As the moonlight shone through the clouds, she saw that no one else was on the roof with her.

* * *

The next day when the sun rose, Ichigo sat in bed for a couple of hours. He didn't know what to do. Ichigo groaned with frustration and stared out the window. He didn't have the right…or the face to ask Rukia to stay.

Well, the only thing he could think of was to go talk to the one person he believed could stop Rukia from leaving.

Ichigo put on his uniform and walked toward the 6th division.

When he approached the office, he knocked loudly at the door, "Byakuya!" He shouted

The door slid open, revealing an irritated looking noble.

"Do you need something…Ichigo?" He said in a monotone.

Ichigo fidgeted a bit. "Actually," he said, "It's about Rukia."

Byakuya arched an eyebrow, "Yes?"

"…Well, she's leaving tomorrow."

"…I know."

Ichigo flinched and looked at Byakuya, "But Byakuya! You're not gonna let her are you?"  
Byakuya didn't say anything.

"It's going to be dangerous! If Inoue's incident with that hollow…err…what ever attacked her…is related to Aizen, than a shinigami going to Hueco Mundo will be…"

"I know. You act as if I wish for her to go there." Byakuya said calmly.

He raised an eyebrow, "She will be accompanied by other shinigami, as well as Kisuke Urahara and Shihouin Yoruichi themselves. She is perfectly safe. There is not a high chance Aizen is involve, and even if he is, Rukia is only going there to make a few observations."

"But…"

"I can trust them to protect her."

"…" Okay, that was a direct insult.

"But why would you be coming to me for this matter? As if I haven't had enough trouble trying to convince Rukia."

"I don't think Rukia will listen to me."

"…Why not?"

"I don't…I can't talk to her any longer…" Ichigo mumbled.

"I see." Byakuya said flatly. Ichigo could've sworn he saw Byakuya shoot a slight glare at him. Byakuya turned his back to Ichigo, "That's interesting…I didn't know that you were such a weak minded person." Byakuya glanced at him from the side of his eyes, "But it seems…not matter how strong you are still human."

Before Ichigo could say anything, Renji came walking up from behind.

"Taichou! I…" He caught sight of Ichigo, "Oh. Hey."

Ichigo nodded, but didn't feel like saying anything much.

_Ichigo, don't mess up with Rukia._

"Well, I'm going to go…" Ichigo whispered and he walked out the door, avoiding any eye contact at all with Renji.

"…" Renji frowned and turned to his captain, "What was he doing here?"

Byakuya looked at Renji with a stoic expression and turned away, "What do _you_ think?"

* * *

Rukia walked down the path by the 13th division, holding a letter in her hand. Rukia held it up and read it over. It seemed like she had been going through a lot of letters lately.

"…Hey Rukia…" A feminine voice called.

Rukia turned around and smiled, "Oh. Hi Orihime. How are your wounds?"

Orihime smiled back, "Almost all healed." She lowered her eyes to the letter Rukia held, "What's that?"  
Rukia's smile dropped. "Oh it's…a letter I'm suppose to take to Kisuke from the Gotei 13…asking for one of the materials to open a Garganta to go to Hueco Mundo."

"You're leaving?" Orihime didn't know why but she felt both sadness and hope.

Rukia shook her head, "No, I'm going to the Human World. I'm going to stay there and meet up with the other shinigami that are going to Hueco Mundo. I'll be there for one more day, and tomorrow we're leaving."

Orihime wasn't quite sure how to react, "But you're leaving Soul Society today?"

"Yeah. The other shinigami already left yesterday. So I'm a bit late. I…wasn't ready yet."

"To say goodbyes?"

"…I guess."

Orihime sighed, "I really wish I could go back to the Human World."

Rukia smiled, "Don't worry. After your wounds heal and your spiritual power stabilizes, you'll be able to cross between different worlds again."

After getting her powers forcibly removed, Orihime's spiritual power began to fragile for her to travel around different spiritual areas, not to mention her recent "accident." It was quite obvious she had to stay for a while.

Rukia waved at Orihime, "Well, I have to go now."

"How…long will you be gone?"

"I don't really know but…" Rukia grinned, "I know we'll meet again." As she turned to leave, Rukia said, "Oh Orihime?"

"Yes?"

"Say goodbye to Ichigo for me."

"…Alright."

And with that, Rukia walked off toward the senkai gate at the entrance of the Seireitei.

* * *

Her departure was more or less than she expected. She was already a day behind the others, so only a few shinigami showed up to say goodbye. She was the only one leaving that day, so saying goodbye would've been more personal anyways.

She received an encouraging farewell from her captain and division members. Byakuya was rather quiet, but seemed extremely sad. Byakuya said his goodbyes, but not before asking her if she really wished to do this. It took another few minutes for Rukia to convince her nii-sama that it was perfectly safe.

Well, the senkai gate had some issues, and it was taking longer than usual for it to get ready. And at the same time, an emergency captain meeting had been called, so her division members, Ukitake, and Byakuya had to leave.

Rukia stood alone, waiting for the senkai gate to activate. Suddenly, she heard footsteps approaching. She couldn't help but wish it was a certain shinigami.

She turned around, "Oh, Renji?" She said. Wrong person. But Rukia smiled, glad that Renji could come.

"…You're leaving." He said bluntly.

Rukia laughed, "No really? Thank you for noticing!"

"Rukia…why…"

Rukia stopped her laughing and went quiet.

"You don't have to leave you know…" Renji said.

"…I want to."

"You don't get it! All you're trying to do is avoi…"

"Renji! I tired of it alright?" Rukia snapped angrily.

Renji bit his lip and frowned.

"…Sorry Renji…I just don't want to keep getting in the way of everything. You know it too right? Every time you and nii-sama and Ichigo…" Rukia paused at the name; "You guys keep helping me and trying to shield me from everything."

Renji started feeling a bit sad. He never knew Rukia had all these thoughts in mind.

She continued, "I know I'm not a great fighter and everything. But believe it or not, there _are _things I am capable of doing." Rukia sighed, "You guys had your chance to get stronger. Well, this is mine."

"…Sorry Rukia…"

Rukia smiled, "I didn't mean to complain or anything. Just don't worry about me."

Renji nodded. A hell butterfly flew past, blasting out a message for all seated officers to report to the 1st division.

"Well, it seems you should go now lieutenant!" Rukia joked.

Renji turned around, "And it seems your senkai gate is ready."

"Yeah. Bye Renji."

Rukia scanned the area, still waiting a bit. When she didn't see anyone else, her face was soaked with disappointment.

Renji saw this and looked at her, "Rukia. If he can't protect you, I will."

Rukia laughed, "Thanks Renji, but I think I'll be fine!" She waved the back of her hand at him.

Smiling, Renji flash stepped away.

_Thump._

Rukia suddenly noticed how empty this part of the Seireitei was.

_Thump._

Rukia then noticed how empty she felt.

_Thump. _

Rukia sat down and decided that she would wait for Ichigo for a little longer.

_Thump. Thump._

Rukia flinched.

_Thump thump thump._

She opened her mouth with shock and tried to jump up, but her body froze.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Someone was here.

Someone who shouldn't be.

"Who's the…?" She tried to choke out.

She gasped.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Rukia couldn't hear her own voice.

She couldn't hear the wind.

She couldn't hear anything.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

All she heard was this steady beating.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

Her vision began to blur as she collapsed onto her knees.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

As she raised her head she was a young man dressed in white approached her.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

The figure bent down by her side as she began gasping for breath, feeling as if her chest was getting crushed.

Thump. Thump. Thump.

Rukia tried to scream, but was engulfed with pain. Right now she was alone.

_Thump. Thump._

What was this sound?

The figure placed his hand on her head.

"W-Where…are…you taking…." Rukia managed to gasp.

_Thump. Thump._

The figure leaned forward by her ear and whispered, "Into a dream."

_Thump. Thump._

"Who are…. you?"

"My name is…"

_Thump._

Rukia didn't hear the rest.

Ichigo…where are you…

Rukia blacked out.

* * *

**Author's Note: Yeah! Cliffhanger! Before you start insulting Ichigo's stupidity…Hm…nah, no spoilers XDD Well, hope you enjoyed and please review!**

**Ryo: Yeah! My OC is awesome!**

**Blade: …What up with all the thumps?**

**Ryo: I am not just gonna give away his power!**

**Blade: ….You just gave away that the thumps have something to do with his powers.**

**Ryo: …oops**


	8. Ocean

**Author's note: So sorry for the late updates! Another note is that the Arrancar in this story is an OC character, NOT Ulquiorra, sorry Ulquihime fans XDDD. Ulquiorra was indeed in the prologue, but from ch. 1 the Arrancar is a completely new character. Once again, soooo sorry for late updates! T.T**

Chapter 8: Ocean

Ichigo paced back and forth in his office. Apparently, Rukia had left…. but Renji had told him her trip had been delayed due to some technical difficulties. Ichigo bit his lip. This was probably going to be his last chance to see Rukia for who knows how long. But, after what has happened, he wasn't sure he had the face to see her. Ichigo paused. He remembered the painful look in Rukia's eyes and his heart sank to his stomach. What should he do? Ichigo furrowed his eyebrows and muttered," Screw this." He grabbed Zangetsu from the wall and ran out the door, praying that Rukia didn't leave yet.

* * *

Rukia moaned. Her head was throbbing quite badly, and every inch of her body was racked with pain. "God…what the hell…" Rukia raised her arm and rubbed her head.

"…."

Cold and wet droplets began to fall on top of her body. "Huh?" Rukia sat up and squinted at the bright light coming from all directions. As her eye adjusted, she looked upward, and widened her eyes. "Where am…"

Rukia gawked as she frantically looked around. She was in the middle of nowhere…literally. She couldn't even tell if she was sitting on a ground or not. She was surrounded by whiteness, blankness. Surrounded by nothing. There was no sky, no ground… just a space of white.

Rukia narrowed her eyes as she stood up.

"…" She remembered what had happened. She was supposed to be exiting the gate…but then someone came. Rukia struggled to remember what had happened, but she couldn't remember much about the person who attacked her. All she remembered was the breath being slowly drained from her, and how she couldn't hear anything except for a…

"Who was that…?" Rukia whispered. After a short silence, she flinched, "More importantly…where the hell am I?"

Another cold droplet dripped onto her head, making her look up. All of here surroundings were white, except for a small crack above her head. Rukia frowned in confusion. The crack seemed to be around 20 feet above her head. Well, maybe even farther away she really couldn't tell due to the lack of perspective.

"Dammit…. what's going on here…." Rukia reached her arm out toward the small dripping crack.

"?" Rukia gasped. Her fingers had touched the cracked. "…This is…"

Rukia reached her other arm toward the crack and stuck her fingers through it. She could feel a slight breeze from the other side of wherever she was. Without thinking, she stuck her hands into it. Where ever it led to she didn't really care anymore.

With a slight bit of force, Rukia ripped the crack open and a bright light shone from the other side, making her close her eyes for a second.

When she opened her eyes, Rukia was standing on a slippery surface. She looked up and saw clouds and a sun in the sky. She looked downward and saw her reflection on the surface. "…This is logic defying…" Rukia mumbled. She kicked at the surface a bit, and created a small crack on the surface.

It only took her a few seconds to realize she was standing on what appeared to be a frozen lake…or ocean. Rukia looked around and couldn't see the ends of the frozen area of water.

Rukia suddenly felt anger rising in her head. Whoever that man was, he did something, and she had a feeling it wasn't good. Rukia mumbled, "Damn him… what does he want…. And what's going on here?"

Rukia began to run, and she yelled, "Where am I? Where's the Soul Society? Where's the Seireitei? Where's the gate?"

For some reason, the more she yelled, the colder the environment seemed to get.

Realizing her running wasn't getting her anywhere, she plopped down onto the cold ice, and her eyes softened, "…. Ichigo…."

She then clenched her fists. Ichigo didn't even come meet her at the gate knowing she would leave for who knows how long. She felt more anger rise into her mind. Rukia clenched her fists, "Tch, who needs him. Where ever he is. I don't care… He better _stay away from me dammit…"_

* * *

Ichigo ran down the streets and saw the Seireitei gate in view. "Rukia…please be there…" He flash stepped over and saw that the Senkai Gate was still open. "What the…" He paused, something wasn't right. Ichigo felt a cold aura over come his body. Slowly, he looked down toward his feet.

He saw Rukia lying on the ground unconscious.

"Rukia!" Ichigo shouted. He bent down and grabbed her shoulders, shaking violently. "Rukia what happened? Wake up!" Ichigo shut himself up and scanned the area. No one was there.

"Damn it! This is all my fault! Dammit!" Ichigo screamed.

He clenched her shoulders tightly until a sudden shock made him release her. Ichigo narrowed his eyes. His hand slowly reached toward her arm, and the second his hand made contact with her arm, he felt Rukia's entire unconscious body drop to a freezing temperature. He quickly drew his hand back. The cold aura surrounding her body disappeared.

"Rukia? Wha…?"

Orihime was sitting under a tree by the 5th division. Well, Rukia was gone. Or so she told herself. Orihime wasn't quite sure how to feel. Yes, she admitted he was rather envious of Rukia, and yet, Rukia was still her friend. Orihime sighed and looked at the sky. The sky darkened as a dark cloud began to cover over the bright sun.

_Thump. Thump._

"!" Orihime jumped up and spun around. _What was that?_

She ended up staring straight at the Arrancar.

"Wh…" Orihime began. She was interrupted by the Arrancar.

"Done."

"What?"

The Arrancar glanced at Orihime with his seemingly lifeless eyes, "I said I'm done."

"…With what?" Orihime choked.

"…You wanted her to stay, correct?"

Orihime nodded slowly.

The Arrancar said flatly, "So stay she will. And she has." He then turned around and began to walk away.

"Wait!" Orihime shouted, "What did you do?" As usual, the Arrancar ignored her.

"Wait! If you won't tell me…" Orihime paused, "At least tell me who you are. I can't do anything not knowing who…"

The Arrancar stopped and turned to face Orihime, "Who am I?"

Orihime felt a cold shiver run through her body at his words, "W…What did you say?"

The Arrancar walked slowly toward her, "I am a shinigami. I am a human. I am a hollow. I am a Quincy. I am Espada. I am everything. I am everyone. I am nobody. I am nothing."

Orihime's body began to shake uncontrollably as the Arrancar approached her. He leaned in close to her face and whispered, "I am destruction. I am creation…"

The Arrancar stared right into her eyes. Orihime began to hyperventilate. She had seen those eyes before….

"I am power. I am weakness. I am God."

She stared into his dark bottomless eyes. It was like a black hole…

_Thump. Thump._

A wave of pain swept through her body as another man's face took the place of the Arrancar for a split second.

_Are you scared of me?_

Orihime screamed and ran away with tears streaming down her face.

"I am pain. I am happiness. I am sorrow. I am joy."

Orihime covered her ears but his voice merely grew louder, for it was not coming from his throat, it was coming from insider her head.

"I am life."

Orihime fell to her knees and began to sob.

"I am also death."

"Stop it! Stop!"

"I am the Hougyokou."

Orihime screamed and buried her head into her palms.

She finally realized who this man was.

"I am a memory."

It didn't matter…she understood. It didn't matter who this man was. What mattered was how he came to existence…and deep in her mind, she knew it was her fault…

"_Inoue…come here." _

"…_What do you want…Aizen-sama…"_

"_I just want to ask you a question."_

"…_."_

"_Where does power come from?"_

"…_I don't know."_

"_Hm. I see. Power can be created. But only the most powerful one."_

"…_Is that not enough?"_

"_No. The most powerful one can be stood up against."_

"_So what are you looking for?"_

"…_The most dangerous one."_

"…_What?"_

"_The most dangerous power. One that cannot die. One that cannot be destroyed. One that will exist until the end of time."_

"…_There's not such thing."_

"_Yes there is…and you will help me find it…"_

"_What?"_

"_Let me ask you another question. Why do Arrancar exist?"_

"_Because they were created by the Hougyokou."_

"_What happens if the Hougyokou was destroyed? Or was sealed?"_

"…_Arrancar will…"_

"_That's right, they will cease to exist. That is why I will find a source of power that can never be destroyed. From that, the most dangerous weapon will be born."_

That's right. The most dangerous weapon. Orihime finally understood why. Why Aizen released her back. Why Aizen stopped the war. Why he took her powers. She understood what Aizen planned. She understood what the most dangerous weapon was. Her powers… That could reject events of the existing world. That can in other words break chains that linked together chronological time and space. Rejection…combined with the Hougyokou… A combination of rejecting events and rejecting limitations.

Aizen had found it. The ultimate source of power that will never disappear.

Orihime whimpered and lowered her head. She realized she had been used as a vessel. The first thing Aizen's new weapon needed was her. He needed her to carry the weapon's first stage from Hueco Mundo to a place where its power would be more enhanced, where it could finally be born.

"I am hell. I am heaven. I am the world. I am deception. I am the truth."

Orihime clenched her fists and stared into the sky. The sun was smothered away from the black clouds.

"I am you."

Orihime closed her eyes as the voice of the Arrancar began to drift away.

"I am the heart."

That's right. The heart. A power born from the heart will never disappear as long as so much as a single person exists in the universe.

"So that's what you are…" Orihime laughed quietly. "You're just another weapon that's going to hurt everyone."

The Arrancar was quiet.

"You…" Orihime clenched her teeth with frustration, "Just another monster…I can't believe I actually helped create something like you…"

"You didn't create me." The Arrancar said, " I already existed… in the forms of hundreds, thousands, billions of humans and spirits. I was a part of everything. You just helped gather it all and with the Hougyokou, created this form of me. I am now an individual born from the hearts of everyone in the world."

"…I already know that." Orihime whispered. _That's why Aizen calls you the most dangerous weapon…you cannot be destroyed. _

Orihime looked up at him. _As long as a single heart exists, so will you. If someone wished to kill you, they must kill every last being in the universe as well. _

"I can be born from any heart. I am bits of everything of existence. Thanks to the Hougyokou and your powers, I can form a body with any heart I can find. My form right now is created from you heart."

"I see you can tell what I am thinking."

"…I can tell what everyone is thinking. I am the heart. I see things that no one else can."

Orihime didn't say a word.

"That's why when you looked into my eyes earlier, you saw that Espada. Since I am everything, a small part of me is from that Espada's heart."

Orihime kept quiet. That explained it…

"I didn't know you talked this much…"

The Arrancar seemed to ignore her. "When something is born, or dies, a part of its spirit becomes part of me."

He turned and looked at Orihime, "If you are afraid of me, then it means you are afraid of yourself."

The Arrancar began to walk away.

"Wait!" Orihime managed to stutter as her mind tried to contradict herself, "This doesn't make sense! But…how did you even get here…no…even with my powers…Aizen can't create a invincible…"

The Arrancar stopped and said, "Stop trying to fool yourself…"

Orihime lowered her head and whispered, "What did you do to Rukia?"

"You'll see soon enough."

* * *

_I am everything. _

_I am nothing._

_If beings were made of water_

_Then I am a drop of each of them_

_When one dies_

_The water that forms its souls_

_Disintegrates and evaporates_

_Into a new entity_

_But _

_That one drop of water _

_Inside their souls_

_Does not evaporate _

_It stays_

_Alone_

_Then another being dies_

_And another drop is left behind_

_And it joins with the previous drop of water_

_That was also left behind._

_As more and more die_

_The drops become a puddle_

_The puddle becomes a pool_

_The pool becomes a lake_

_The lake becomes a sea_

_That sea becomes an ocean_

_I am that ocean_

_Made of those drops of water_

_Those drops…. what do humans call it?_

_A mind_

_A soul_

_A memory_

_Emotion_

_A heart_

_Yes…a heart_

_Each of those drops are bits of the hearts beings leave behind after they die, or when they are born into a new entity._

_I am that ocean_

_Created by joining all those drops of water_

_I am insignificant as one_

_But when those drops are joined_

_I become that ocean_

_That will drown the rest of the world_

_Into a hell_

_Facing that wrath_

_We call a heart_

* * *

Orihime watched as the Arrancar began leave.

"You'll be back won't you?" Orihime whispered sadly, with a part of her mind begging that he would vanish from her life.

"Yes."

"…Do you have a name?"

"…Yes"

Orihime bit her lip. "What should I call you?"

The Arrancar hesitated a bit, "…Raiso."

"Who gave you that name?"

"…No one."

* * *

Renji yawned as he walked out of the emergency meeting room. "Damn, that was tiring…" He groaned. Renji paused and sighed. "Ug, seriously, why is it so hard to catch that whatever it is thing that's infiltrating Seireitei…"

"Renji!"

"Huh?" Renji looked up and saw Ichigo charging at him. He frowned, "Ichigo? Why weren't you at the meeting…"

"It's Rukia! Something's wrong with her!"

"What?"  
Ichigo turned and ran back toward the direction of where Rukia was with Renji chasing after him.

"Ichigo! What happened to Rukia?" Renji panted/

"I don't know! She's unconscious!"

Renji glared at him, "You idiot! And you left her there alone?"

Ichigo glared back, "Shut up Renji! I couldn't move her! I didn't know what was wrong but I didn't see any wounds so I didn't know what to do! If I moved her…what if she got hurt even more? Huh? Each time I tried to pick her up her whole body would begin to freeze!"

Renji raised an eyebrow.

Ichigo snapped, "I mean her body temperature would completely drop each time I touched her! No one was there either I had to go get help!"

They reached their destination and saw Rukia lying there on the ground. But this time, Orihime was by her side too. Orihime jumped back at the sound of Ichigo and Renji running.

"Oh! K-Kurosaki-kun!"  
"In-Orihime? When did…"

"Uh…just a while ago…I got here just when you left…"

Ichigo nodded, but too distracted by Rukia to notice that mistake Orihime made in her sentence.

For some reason though, Renji caught it.

He frowned a bit. _Wait, she said she just got here when Ichigo left...how did she know Ichigo was even here? What's going on? Is there something she's not telling us…?_

Renji saw Rukia lying on the ground and he groaned. "Dammit!" He pulled out his communicator, "This is Abarai Renji lieutenant of squad 6! Call an emergency medical squad to the northern Seireitei gate immediately! Rukia Kuchiki of the 13th division is unconscious! This is an emergency! _Move_!"

Ichigo tried to shake Rukia again, but the moment he touched her, he felt her body temperature drop. "What the hell…"

"!" Ichigo flinched when he realized something. "Orihime…Is Rukia…breathing?"

Orihime leaned close to Rukia. Her face paled. "…No…"

"Shit!" Ichigo screamed. "Orihime! Can you hea…"

Ichigo shut his mouth and turned away from Orihime. Wow. He just tried to ask her to heal Rukia…and for a second forgot it was his fault she didn't have any.

"Wait! Kurosaki-kun! She has pulse!"

"What? But she's not breathing? How can she have a…"

A clutter of footsteps cut off his sentence. Ichigo turned around and saw the 4th division running over, along with Ukitake and Byakuya.

"What happened here? Rukia?" Ukitake gasped.

Byakuya closed his eyes in shock.

"Unohana-san! Please! You…" Ichigo started.

Unohana said firmly, "Please stand back, everyone. We need to get her to the barracks as soon as possible!"

Ichigo couldn't do anything. He stood there as he watched the 4th division carry Rukia away. Orihime glanced up at Ichigo and saw the pain in his eyes.

Orihime lowered her eyes and fiddled with the bottom of her shirt with her fingers.

_Raiso…what did you do…_

* * *

"Hello? Anyone!" Rukia yelled at the top of her lungs. Her voice merely echoes throughout the endless area of ice.

She was beginning to panic.

Something was changing; something was different from when she first appeared here.

For some reason, every few minutes the ice below her would suddenly creep up onto her legs, making her body completely engulfed by coldness. She would the kick away the ice and run off, even though she knew it wasn't helping.

This ice creeping up her body only happened 2 times. The first time it ice had crept up so suddenly Rukia almost passed out from the shock of coldness. The second time it began to crawl up her leg, but immediately sink away.

But both those times, as the ice crept up her body, she would feel Ichigo's spiritual pressure. The more intense it got, the more anger she felt and the more she didn't want to see him.

Rukia sat down on the cold ice. She curled up into a ball and buried her head into her legs. Ironically, her body began to shark uncontrollably from the bitter cold. She had given up all hope that Ichigo was going to look for her.

_Why am I replying on him? I can do fine without him! I'm not so weak that I need someone protecting me! I'm different from 2 years ago. I can fight now…but…_

"Ichigo…dammit…Ichigo you jerk!" Rukia snapped angrily and slammed her fist against the ice with her right fist, cracking a bit of it and making freezing water spill out.

* * *

Ichigo sighed and paced around the 4th division nervously.

"Oh god…Rukia…" Ichigo forced his eyes closed and his body began to shake. Suddenly, he felt a severe cramp attack his right leg. "Ah!" Doubled over with pain, Ichigo fell face first onto the ground. He moaned as he crawled up and attempted to massage his twitching leg, that was for some reason, not moving very well, as if it were frozen…

* * *

"Dammit…what's going on?" Rukia muttered as she buried her head into her legs again. She closed her eyes, "Come one…this is just a dream…just a dream…someone…end this nightmare already! Someone tell me! Am I still alive? Am I dead?"

_Crack_  
A wave of ice shot out from the surface and consumed Rukia, dragging her down into the waters of the frozen ocean. It sucked away her breath as she desperately tried to reach for the dimly lit surface.

After a few seconds the light disappeared, and Rukia gasped under the cold water, taking mouthfuls and filling up her lings.

Did she dare open her eyes?

Rukia moaned. Shaking a bit, she slowly opened her eyes.

The water was gone.

The coldness was gone.

Her body was dry.

Rukia groaned and tried to sit herself up, and immediately noticed her hands were on a dry muddy surface. The wind was chilly, and when she looked up she saw a dead tree, its dried up leaves slowly falling toward the isolated ground.

The last leaf of the tree fell, and Rukia's eyes followed it as it wandered with the wind.

The leaf gently landed on a large rock from a distance.

"…" Rukia began to shiver. She didn't know what to do anymore. She didn't know what happened, where she was…. She could've sworn that the rock wasn't there a few minutes ago, but after what's happened…she really didn't know whether or not she could believe anything anymore.

She walked over to the rock, and dusted the surface with her hands. Old, ragged carvings appeared underneath the dust and cobwebs.

Now that she saw it clearly, she realized it was a tombstone.

!

Rukia stumbled back and gasped. Memories flooded through her head. She remembered…she remembered everything.

That face, those eyes…

That name

_Thump. Thump._

Rukia breathed heavily and stared at the tombstone.

Who are you? My name is…

_Thump. Thump._

_My name is…_

Rukia stared at the tombstone, wondering what was happening.

Ah yes. She remembered those last words.

_Where are you taking me?_

…_Into a dream…_

The feeling of emptiness leading to that empty white world. The feeling of coldness and loneliness leading to the frozen ocean. The feeling of anger and Ichigo's spiritual presence leading to the creeping ice. The feeling of wanting the truth…leading to this grave. That deliberate thumping she felt before she passed out into the world. The fact that her thoughts were reflected into her surroundings. It all began to make a bit of sense.

_My name is…_

Rukia clenched her fists and turned her back to the tombstone and began to walk away. Where? She didn't know. But that wasn't important. She had to find a way to escape this place.

_My name is…_

Rukia hesitated and took one last glance at the name on the tombstone behind her.

_Raiso Kidd. _

_Welcome to my dream._

_Welcome to your heart. _

* * *

**Author's Note: omg sorry if this was really confusing _**

**Yes extra long chappie, to make up for the late update XD**  
**Well hope you enjoyed and please review!**


	9. Breaking a Bond

Chapter 9: Breaking a Bond

**Author's Note: As you can see, we are trying to update whenever possible. And as you can see again, we are failing miserably at it. So sorry T.T**

* * *

"Captain…what is this?" Isane leaned over Rukia's body.

Captain Unohana shook her head, "To be honest I don't know…I don't understand how she can not be breathing, yet her heart is still beating…this doesn't make any sense."

She turned around and looked out the room's window. It had been a normal day, until Rukia Kuchiki was rushed in surrounded by people yelling nonsense.

Especially from Ichigo Kurosaki. His loud voice was making things more confusing, rants about cold body temperatures (in which she did not find from Rukia's body) so she had to dismiss him from the room.

Unohana looked at Rukia and sighed, "Well this is just weird. She's not breathing, her heartbeat is perfectly normal, and…" she frowned and paused. Loud yelling and arguing were coming through the walls from the hallway.

It stopped.

Unohana continued, "And this…"

The arguing continued.

Followed by what sounded like a punch in the face.

Unohana sighed. She turned to Isane, "The most we can do is make sure that she's alive…and we have to find out what caused this…"

Isane nodded and turned to talk to the rest of the medical relief team.

Unohana stepped out the door toward the sounds of yelling and arguing and braced herself for what was to come.

* * *

Rukia walked silently through the dying woods. The only sounds came from the scrunching of the dead leaves beneath her feet.

"Raiso Kidd huh…." Rukia whispered to herself. She continued walking, although she had already figured out long ago that wherever she was, she wasn't going to get anywhere at anytime.

She paused for a minute.

_Welcome to my dream._

_Welcome to your heart._

"So…who's in control…" Rukia mumbled to herself. She recalled the appearance of the man who approached her…he was obviously an enemy, and possibly the one responsible for Orihime's accident.

And his voice…

That mysterious figure Orihime talked to a few weeks back…

Rukia shook her head. "Stop pulling Orihime into this just because Ichigo…"

Rukia stopped herself. She really didn't know how to complete that sentence. No matter though, her first priority was to get out of…this place.

Rukia looked around and decided that she had to completely understand this place first. She reached her right hand to her zanpakuto's hilt as she slowly walked toward a tree.

Swiftly, she sliced the tree into two, stepped back, and waited.

Nothing happened. It was as if her sword never even made contact.

Rukia frowned. And sheathed her sword and plopped onto the cold ground. She sighed and mumbled to herself, "If this place really is my heart…why doesn't it resemble my inner world…where I communicate with Sode no Shirayuki?"

Rukia sat in silence, thinking to herself, trying to process the logic of this world.

"….Oh come on!" Rukia leaped up and shouted in anger, "I'm not good with forced deep thinking! How am I suppose to know anything about hearts or dreams?"  
A soft wind came by and the leaves on the ground rustled.

_Hearts huh…_Rukia sighed, "Kaien-dono…"

She bit her lip, recalling the gentle words spoken by the man she had respected. Thinking of his words made the knot in her stomach loosen a bit.

Rukia kicked her feet at the soft green grass blowing gently in the breeze.

"…."

Green grass?

Rukia gasped and looked up from the ground. Once again the scenery had changed. The dead trees were now green and fresh, the gray skies were now a light blue, and the lifeless ground was now covered with grass.

Rukia narrowed her eyes and looked around. Her eyes widened with surprise. No doubt about it. This was the place where Kaien first talked to her about his beliefs.

"But…how…why…" Rukia stuttered.

A sudden thought popped into her mind, "So this place…it reacts to my emotions and thoughts? So I am in control…"

She crossed her arms and frowned again, "But then, how is it possible that that… man managed to take control…But now that I am in control again…how do I get out?"

The soft grass brushed by her feet, and Rukia heaved a heavy sigh. This was too confusing.

Rukia furrowed her eyebrows. Something came to her mind…something Kaien had said…but what was it…

Rukia racked her brain and groaned, "Think think think…"

_Never die alone…_

No…

_You're hungry aren't you…hahaha_

Ok, that was just random…

_When one connects with another, a bit of heart is born between them…_

Rukia opened her mouth a little bit and looked up at the sky.

"Ah…" Rukia paused then shook her head. She began walking, trying to think of what was going on…

* * *

Ichigo gasped and turned around from Renji, whose fist was about to make contact to his face.

Renji looked surprised as well, as he release Ichigo when Unohana approached them.

Ukitake and Byakuya stood up as well, and waited patiently for what Unohana had to say.

Ichigo and Renji, though, weren't so patient.

Ichigo leaped over, "Rukia! Is she going to be ok?"

Unohana opened her mouth to say something, but was immediately interrupted by Renji, "Captain! Please! You have to save Rukia!"

Unohana sighed, "Well…"

Ichigo burst out again, "Ah damn! It's all my fault!"

Renji glared at Ichigo, "Look, it's _my _fault for leaving her along. It's _also_ my fault that I actually believed you could protect her as well!"

Ichigo glared back at him.

Unohana was tempted to give them her infamous I'm-going-to-kill-you-by-smiling looks.

Ukitake sighed.

"Well Unohana-san?" Ukitake began, "Is she…"

Byakuya never looked so tense before, Unohana thought.

Unohana shook her head, "Unfortunately, I have no idea what happened to her."

Byakuya cut in, "But will she recover?"

Unohana shoot her head again, "Like I said, I have no clue what happened."

She saw the looks of dismay on all 4 of the men in front of her, and added, "On the bright side, we're pretty sure she can manage to stay alive, and our main priority is to find out what happened to her…or…" She looked them in the eye, "Or who did this to her."

Ukitake frowned and turned to Renji, "Renji, the minute you left, how long was it until Ichigo chased after you?"

Renji thought for a second, "I'd say only by 3 minutes…at most."

Ukitake nodded and turned to Ichigo, "And when you found Rukia, got Renji and came back, how long did it take?"

Ichigo shrugged sadly, "2 minutes…no …1. We came as fast as we could."

Byakuya asked a bit coldly, "Was Rukia in the exact same condition when you came back as when you found her…Kurosaki?"

Ichigo nodded, but added, "Oh, and Inou…Orihime was there with her when I came back. So I'm sure nothing happened in between."

Renji narrowed his eyes a bit, remembering Orihime's odd statement at the time.

Byakuya nodded. "Very well, we will discuss this at the Captain's meeting. This concerns the whole Seireitei now…It may appear that this is more than an coincidental accident."

As they turned to leave, Unohana added, "I think I should mention, I found traces of reiatsu mixed with Rukia Kuchiki's."

The 4 shinigami turned around and stared at Unohana.

She nodded and added, "It was the same as that found in Orihime Inoue's wound from her accident."

* * *

Rukia walked quietly along the grass, still deep in thought. A bit too deep though, considering she had been walking up a hill recalling her memories and almost walking off a small cliff.

She raised her head and sighed. Of course the scenery changed again. She was standing before a cliff with 3 graves aligned around the edges.

It wasn't the right time, but she began to miss her friends again.

Rukia sighed for the 10th time in the last 10 minutes. "Maybe I should stop thinking…it's just making things too confusing…right guys?"

She stared and the mounds of dirt. They were gone, yet still lived in her memories.

Memories…Rukia widened her eyes. "Ichigo…Kaien…wait a minute…"

_Memories aren't everything! You can't break the bond we share! _

When one connects with another, a bit of heart is born between them…

Rukia gasped aloud. It made sense now. She faced her back against the cliff and began to ran. She knew how to get out now.

"Thanks guys…Kaien…Ichigo…" She whispered.

She shunpo-ed as fast as she could, pushing herself faster and faster, staring straight ahead, remembering how she got to the cliff…the grassland…the woods…the ice land…the dying cemetery.

Everything around her began to change, the grass and tress melted away, water began the leak out of the ground.

She continued running.

The water began to freeze as the sky began to darken.

She ran faster, recalling every detail, every memory or her footstep she took in this place.

The sky flushed into a light gray, and the ice below her feet cracked open.

She continued running.

The ice exposed dry dirt beneath the surface, and black, dead tress emerged from the ground.

She ran.

The snow flowing through the air shattered into dark colored leaves.

Rukia ran and ran…and remembered that one last detail. Everything that she had encountered in this world was reflected of her feelings and her memories.

Except for one small detail that did not belong to any of those.

A large stone appeared in the horizon, and Rukia stopped running,

She walked carefully to the tombstone and read the engravings.

Raiso Kidd

_Welcome to my dream_

_Welcome to your heart  
__  
_"You entered my heart, and in doing so, you left some tracings of yourself with me." Rukia said. "When one connects with another, a heart is born between them. And this is the one you formed, acting like a pathway from you to me. I don't know if you intended to trap me here forever, but you did, you made a mistake. You left a way for me to get out, just by entering my heart. Bonds cannot be broken…"

Rukia drew out her sword.

"But in this case…"

Rukia gave a smile as she raised her sword.

"I assume I can literally do it."

With a powerful swing, Rukia split the tombstone into two.

A light shone from the severed tombstone, engulfing Rukia and the world that was her heart.

* * *

Orihime stared out the window quietly, consumed with thoughts and feelings that made no sense to her whatsoever.

There was a slight knock on her door and she quickly snapped out of it.

"C-Come in!" She called.

The door creaked open, and Renji walked inside with a friendly expression on his face. "Hey Orihime!" He called.

Orihime blinked, "Renji? What are you doing here?"

Renji shrugged, "Just wanted to thank you for watching over Rukia." He narrowed his eyes a bit when Orihime's face paled at the sound of Rukia's name.

"Yeah…I hope she'll be alright…" She whispered.

Renji raised an eyebrow, "By the way, Orihime…when did you get there?"

Orihime looked up, "Oh." She said, "Right when Ichigo left."

"How did you know when he left?"

Orihime flinched.

Renji crossed his arms and waited.

"I-I assumed that because well I sensed Ichigo leaving right when I saw Rukia…" Orihime stuttered. She never was good at lying.

Renji, obviously concerned about Rukia, began to lose patience, "Yeah, but still. What did you do after finding Rukia?"

Orihime stuttered again, "I-There was nothing I was able to do…"

Renji continued pushing, "Did you know what happened?"

"No…why would I?"

"They saw Rukia was attacked."

"But…"

"By the same Arrancar or hollow that attacked you."

"T-That's impossible, she…"

"They say Rukia's not gonna make it."

Orihime gasped, "No! That can't be…Raiso said…" Realizing her slip of tongue, Orihime instantly shut her mouth.

But the damage was done.

Renji's face darkened, "Who is Raiso?"

Orihime looked away, "I-I can't…I…"

Renji walked up right into her face, "Orihime…you've been hiding something from us…haven't you?"

Orihime felt the color melt away from her face as she stared into Renji's cold, unforgiving eyes.

* * *

Rukia opened her eyes, expecting to see herself lying on the grass by the Senkaimon Gate. But of course, she let her hopes up too high.

Once again, she was standing in the middle of nowhere. Whiteness, blankness surrounded her.

"Maybe this is good," Rukia said to herself, "After all I started here, so I'm probably…"

"Going to go back?" A voice came from behind.

Rukia grabbed the hilt of her sword and spun around. "Who's there?" She shouted.

A figure stood in front of her. It was a man in the uniform of an Arrancar, wearing the upper jawbone of a Hollow across his forehead.

There were two light blue stripes on his right cheek.

And his eyes were a frozen blue color.

Rukia stared at him for a few seconds.

"Are you Raiso Kidd?" She demanded.

The Arrancar stared into her eyes…

And smiled.

"Correct."

* * *

**Author's Note: Yay we're kinda going somewhere with this :D Well hope you enjoyed and please review!**

**P.S. LOL we used a quote from Ichigo from the 3****rd**** movie Fade to Black!**

**ICHIRUKI FTW **


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